(The Nosher via JTA) — Here’s a comforting yet elevated Shabbat dish from chef Yehuda Sichel of Abe Fisher. Ingredients: 1 cup pearled barley 1 cup dried kidney beans 3/4 pound boneless short ribs, cut into 2-inch cubes 1/2 pound kosher salami, cut into 1/2-inch cubes 1 large yellow… Read more »
Posts By Sara Harelson
This Jewish Mother-Daughter Team Could Change A Girl’s Life, One Bowl of Soup at a Time
(Kveller via JTA) — A confession: I mock social media publicly. I loudly echo the sentiments expressed by so many — that social media is changing the way we interact with each other; that it can cause depression and anxiety; that we all need to step away from the… Read more »
Jewish war veterans want the young warriors to tell their stories
ARLINGTON, Va. (JTA) — Jews don’t serve in the military. Jews shouldn’t serve in the military. Forget about being Jewish — the mission comes first. Like a lot of other Jewish dilemmas, what’s old for Jews who serve in the U.S. military is new again, and the organization established… Read more »
These Jewish women say celebrating Purim in the #MeToo era is different
NEW YORK (JTA) — When Meredith Jacobs was taught the Purim story as a little girl in the 1970s and ’80s, Esther was made out to be its heroine, while Queen Vashti was its “evil queen.” According to the Book of Esther, Vashti was banished by her husband, the… Read more »
Poland’s prime minister said some Jews collaborated with Nazis. Scholars say he distorted history.
(JTA) — The row between Poland and Israel about the Holocaust reached new heights this week after Poland’s prime minister said that the genocide had not only Polish, Ukrainian and German perpetrators, but Jewish ones as well. Addressing a new law that criminalizes blaming Poland for Nazi crimes, Mateusz Morawiecki said… Read more »
Here are new some children’s books for Passover — and spring, too
(JTA) — A talking parrot saves the family seder and a moose-musician is eager to host his perfect first Passover meal in a pair of delightful new children’s books for the holiday, which this year begins on the night of March 30. A third book celebrates the rich diversity… Read more »
OP-ED: Here’s why we report on the Jewish victims of general tragedies
(JTA) — In the many years between my first job at JTA and returning as its editor in 2016, I would joke about a headline it published in 1999: “Two Turkish Jews killed in quake.” Perhaps you’ll remember that 17,000 people died in the Turkish earthquake that year. That headline seemed… Read more »
This Jewish lawyer blogs about Hanukkah. He also defends America’s most infamous Nazi.
WASHINGTON (JTA) — Jay Marshall Wolman, like a thousand other lawyers on Twitter, is wry, maybe a little coarse and, well, Jewish, peppering his tweets with Hebrew blessings and other Jewish references. He gets deadly serious, though, if you ask him why he is the lead attorney representing Andrew… Read more »
The Jewish sheriff leading the response to the Florida school shooting quotes the Talmud
(JTA) — As he leads the police response to the school shooting in Parkland, Florida, Broward County Sheriff Scott Israel is likely enduring some of the toughest days of his career. And he’s probably looking to his Judaism to guide him through it. Israel is the county’s first Jewish… Read more »
Florida school shooting’s Jewish victims remembered for their kindness
(JTA) — They volunteered. They played soccer. They went to camp. They were sweet, mature and easygoing. They were just beginning their lives, or helping others on their way. And one may have died so that others could live. Jewish students and staff were among the 17 people who… Read more »
Jewish food does not begin and end with kosher
SAN FRANCISCO (JTA) — At a time when more than three-quarters of American Jews say they do not keep kosher, should we be shocked when Jews gather together and eat non-kosher food? American Jews have always gone beyond the restrictions of Jewish dietary laws, eating non-kosher (treif or trefa)… Read more »
5 times Israeli politicians said ‘there’s nothing to it’ and ended up in jail
(JTA) — Police are recommending charges of bribery and breach of trust against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. He’s saying the case police have made is “full of holes, like Swiss cheese.” Police allege Netanyahu received expensive gifts from supporters in return for advancing their interests, including expensive cigars… Read more »
Blood Orange, Saffron and Semolina Cake Recipe
(The Nosher via JTA) — Upside down cakes are one of my favorite types of cakes to make, mostly because they are an easy way to impress. In an upside down cake, the fruit is layered on the bottom of the pan along with sugar, and a simple, fluffy… Read more »
Why are Jewish leaders fighting about Qatar? Here’s a scorecard.
WASHINGTON (JTA) — There’s a battle going on among pro-Israel leaders, and it’s over Qatar. It’s like watching ice hockey players clear the bench for a brawl, only the antagonists are all on the same team. The folks lining up to praise or bury the emirate are best known… Read more »
This Israeli-Ethiopian woman brings the food of her cultures to Harlem
NEW YORK (JTA) — At Tsion Café in Harlem, visitors can order a vegetable injera, an Ethopian sourdough flatbread topped with vegetable, lentil and chickpea stews. There is traditional shakshuka, a dish common in Israel and the Middle East where eggs are cooked in a hearty tomato sauce. And… Read more »
Israel, Iran and Syria just traded blows. Does this mean war?
(JTA) — Israel and Iran have been clashing for years. But on Saturday, their war of words briefly became an actual fight. In short succession, Iran sent a drone into Israel, Israel shot it down and took out the drone launcher in Syria, Iranian-allied Syria downed an Israeli plane,… Read more »
Making Jewish, American identities meaningful
As I enter my seventh decade of life, I often reflect on my family: Where we came from and where we are going. Each year, I gain a greater appreciation for how Judaism has made such a difference in my life and my family. At my great-grandfather’s funeral in… Read more »
Simon’s ‘Lost in Yonkers’ on tap at Arizona Rose Theatre
The Arizona Rose Theatre is bringing back one of its most popular shows, Neil Simon’s “Lost in Yonkers,” beginning Feb. 24. Winner of the Tony Award for Best Play and the Pulitzer Prize, this heartfelt comedy is drawn from Simon’s experiences growing up in New York City. Set during… Read more »
At 2018 women’s march, anti-Israel rhetoric destroys sense of unity
It started the day of the Oakland Women’s March with the same sense of hope and anticipation as loved ones who were marching across the country. As fate would have it, I was putting the finishing touches on a 1,000-piece Wonder Woman puzzle our family had been toiling on… Read more »
At JFSA Northwest, Holocaust survivor to share his story
Pawel Lichter, a Holocaust survivor who lives in Tucson, will present “A Polish Jew’s Story of Survival” at a community event sponsored by the Northwest Division of the Jewish Federation of Southern Arizona on Tuesday, Feb. 13 at 6 p.m. at the Northwest office, 190 W. Magee Road, Suite… Read more »